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Description

Zoe
For Disney-Club’s Contest #59: A retelling of Rumpelstiltskin (Rum).

The girl rumored to spin straw into gold
The boy who can turn anything to gold with a touch
And the King who want a golden kingdom

When the miller’s youngest daughter delivers bobbles of mysterious metal threads, she is suddenly rumored to spin straw into gold. Upon the King’s orders, she is immediately arrested and imprisoned for to spin straw into gold “again” by morning – if she fails, she will be executed for practicing dangerous arts yet failing to serve his country, and if she succeeds, she will serve and be protected under a marriage to the prince.

This mild-mannered lass’ attempt to argue the truth that she in fact cannot spin straw into gold is continuously interrupted or ignored. Frustrated, she began running through plans to escape when she is interrupted by a strange boy hiding in the straw bales.

The guilty but noble lad shares that he can turn anything that he touches into gold for 3 days with his hands where his blessing/curse ends, as marked by a tattoo. (Yup, he’s accidently responsible for dragging her life closer to death) His blessing/curse should be lifted once someone says his name. Unfortunately, he’s forgotten it while his memories and evidence of his previous existence fades more each day. Admittedly, he scared one day he might just disappear altogether or more practically, kidnapped for his magic!

The mill girl reworks their escape plan. They are going to turn the straw into gold, and in the morning, they will use royal resources to somehow find his name as she will be a temporarily princess (hopefully within 3 days). If they succeed or fail, they will stick together as they are both outcasts now in this mess.

“Oh… I never asked your name?”
“Zoe! It’s Zoe!”

The girl who is easily forgotten, but barely forgets
The boy who has been forgotten and is slowly forgetting
And the King who forgets but does want not to be forgotten

What did you change about the story for your entry?

A lot. Things like spinning straw to gold, death penalties and magic becoming undone by names has stayed, but a lot has changed. For example, Rum is not depicted as a villain in this remake. He’s originally a strange but neutral character – he did not lie, did not threaten to kill anyone, did not break his word and was willing to compromise/barter to help another somehow – so he keeps those traits. His ability to turn anything he touches into gold was borrowed from the King Midas myth.

I also focused on names as a theme as they tie into one’s identity. Who are you? Who lives, who dies, who tells you story? Eliza! -- Alexander Hamilton! Names are ways to acknowledge as well as accept someone that they are there, here and they do manner whether they be for a span of a temporary life or passed down through history. When all is said and done, after the name is forgotten, you can either become a mythical unicorn with lost historical facts or nothing at all. (example: ayellowbirds.tumblr.com/post/1…)

You can also shape its impact as it represents you.

Other notes on creative process:

The formula for Rum’s curse is those/that he was closest pre-curse would forget him/lose traces he was there first, faster and more so. While he and Zoe are practically strangers, she does have the small memory of him in her mind library if she tries very hard.

Description

Zoe
For Disney-Club’s Contest #59: A retelling of Rumpelstiltskin (Rum).

The girl rumored to spin straw into gold
The boy who can turn anything to gold with a touch
And the King who want a golden kingdom

When the miller’s youngest daughter delivers bobbles of mysterious metal threads, she is suddenly rumored to spin straw into gold. Upon the King’s orders, she is immediately arrested and imprisoned for to spin straw into gold “again” by morning – if she fails, she will be executed for practicing dangerous arts yet failing to serve his country, and if she succeeds, she will serve and be protected under a marriage to the prince.

This mild-mannered lass’ attempt to argue the truth that she in fact cannot spin straw into gold is continuously interrupted or ignored. Frustrated, she began running through plans to escape when she is interrupted by a strange boy hiding in the straw bales.

The guilty but noble lad shares that he can turn anything that he touches into gold for 3 days with his hands where his blessing/curse ends, as marked by a tattoo. (Yup, he’s accidently responsible for dragging her life closer to death) His blessing/curse should be lifted once someone says his name. Unfortunately, he’s forgotten it while his memories and evidence of his previous existence fades more each day. Admittedly, he scared one day he might just disappear altogether or more practically, kidnapped for his magic!

The mill girl reworks their escape plan. They are going to turn the straw into gold, and in the morning, they will use royal resources to somehow find his name as she will be a temporarily princess (hopefully within 3 days). If they succeed or fail, they will stick together as they are both outcasts now in this mess.

“Oh… I never asked your name?”
“Zoe! It’s Zoe!”

The girl who is easily forgotten, but barely forgets
The boy who has been forgotten and is slowly forgetting
And the King who forgets but does want not to be forgotten

What did you change about the story for your entry?

A lot. Things like spinning straw to gold, death penalties and magic becoming undone by names has stayed, but a lot has changed. For example, Rum is not depicted as a villain in this remake. He’s originally a strange but neutral character – he did not lie, did not threaten to kill anyone, did not break his word and was willing to compromise/barter to help another somehow – so he keeps those traits. His ability to turn anything he touches into gold was borrowed from the King Midas myth.

I also focused on names as a theme as they tie into one’s identity. Who are you? Who lives, who dies, who tells you story? Eliza! -- Alexander Hamilton! Names are ways to acknowledge as well as accept someone that they are there, here and they do manner whether they be for a span of a temporary life or passed down through history. When all is said and done, after the name is forgotten, you can either become a mythical unicorn with lost historical facts or nothing at all. (example: ayellowbirds.tumblr.com/post/1…)

You can also shape its impact as it represents you.

Other notes on creative process:

The formula for Rum’s curse is those/that he was closest pre-curse would forget him/lose traces he was there first, faster and more so. While he and Zoe are practically strangers, she does have the small memory of him in her mind library if she tries very hard.